Smashburger opens at Pavilion East

Smashburger near Duke hospital: The burger chain Smashburger is opening a new restaurant at Pavilion East.

The company has signed a lease for a space that never has been occupied in the shopping center, which is off Erwin Road near Duke University Hospital. The center is also home to T.G.I. Fridays and Chipotle.

According to its website, the company’s burgers are smashed, seared and seasoned-to-order. They’re made with never-been-frozen Angus beef, and come with artisan buns and topping options such as cheese, grilled onions, yellow mustard, or spicy chipotle sauce.

The restaurant is expected to open in the spring, said Charlie Coyne, a senior vice president and principal of CBRE Raleigh. The real estate company handled the leasing of the 2,974-square-foot space to the restaurant chain.

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Comings and goings at Southpoint Crossing: A hot yoga studio and an animal hospital are just two of the new tenants coming to the Southpoint Crossing shopping center.

Located off N.C. 54 near its intersection with Fayetteville Road, Arrichion hot yoga studio, which also has locations in Raleigh and Charlotte, is opening a new location in the center.

Also, the space formerly occupied by Hallmark is being subdivided into two spaces, said Paul V. Muñana, a senior leasing agent with Regency Centers Corp.

One of those will be taken up by a location of The Little Gym, which offers physical development classes for children ages 4 months to 12 years. Program instructors teach parent-child classes, gymnastics, karate, dance, and sports skills.

Muñana declined to comment on the new lease, but according to the website for the shopping center, Southpoint Crossing will be the new home of a second Durham location of Banfield Pet Hospital, a chain of animal hospitals owned by the multinational conglomerate Mars Inc. The company is also the owner of the pet food product brand Royal Canin and Whiskas, as well as the chocolate brands Milky Way, Mars, Snickers, M&M’s, Dove, Starburst, and Skittles.

The website shows a lease with Medical Management International Inc., which is a company created to own the clinic.

In addition to the Hallmark, the center has seen the closure of a Rudino’s restaurant location this year. It appears the animal hospital is going into that space.

Also in the center, the Quizno’s sandwich shop has closed. Muñana said the shop closed Oct. 25. He said he hasn’t formalized a deal yet for a replacement yet.

Muñana said the shopping center has benefited from an uplift. He said the center has been painted, the awnings replaced, and there’s been some landscaping. “It definitely gives it a new appearance,” he said.